Awake and Alive
by KittenRainbow
Summary: Every night, Mike dreads coming to Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria, because he knows about the malicious nature of the animatronics. But then they all turn benevolent, which is rather surprising. Mike even starts to feel like...he can be friends with them. But unfortunately, nothing is ever easy. R&R!
1. Chapter 1: The Phone Call

***static hissing***

 _"Hello...hello, hello?_

 _"Um...hey there, Mike. It's me. I, uh...need to tell you something._

 _"I know it's pretty short notice, since it's Sunday and all...but don't come to work tonight. Or the rest of the week. Just don't come in. I'm giving you the week off._

 _"Don't worry about the pay, you'll be given a check as usual on Friday. Don't sweat it._

 _"Y-You, uh...may be asking why I'm giving you the week off all of a sudden. It's, uh...because of the animatronics. We're not blaming you, since you didn't work yesterday...so don't worry. But, um...something's happened. They all...malfunctioned. Bad. It's gonna take us about a week to fix them up so that they'll work again. We'll have someone come in to take your spot for those nights, but you'll still be paid. Heh...I guess it's lucky for you, huh?_

 _"Just be real careful when you come in next week. I know you say they...how did you say it -_ come alive _...but since we're fixing them...they may act different. We don't know how, since we have to re-program their systems and all...so I'm just saying to watch your step when you come in._

 _"That's it for now, Mike. So, uh...relax this week, I guess. I'll see you next week."_

 ***click***


	2. Chapter 2: Return

Mike Schmidt walked into the dark pizzeria, famously known as Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria, with cold sweat dripping down his neck. His breathing was labored and his hands were shaky as he gripped the collar of his jacket. Turning his head to look at the Show Stage, he felt his hair stand on end as he looked at the three lifeless animatronics positioned on stage, their heads turned down. The faraway curtain that was once Pirate's Cove was also down; it never moved, nor did he see the yellow glint of a certain animatronic fox peering at him.

Those fucking robots were always trying to kill him.

This was the first night of the week, a Monday. It had been four weeks since Mike had applied for this nightmarish hell that people had the nerve to call a job. Four weeks of animatronics coming to life and trying to kill him.

Four weeks of total panic, utter terror and blinding fear.

And now it would be _five_ weeks.

(Actually, it would have been six, but Mike had gotten that phone call from his manager on Saturday, saying to take the next week off. The animatronics had "broken down" or something. Whatever. He didn't really give a fuck at this point.)

Mike was well-accustomed to the procedure by now: stay in the Office at all times, check the cameras, flash the lights whenever he heard one of those assholes coming, close the doors if someone DID come, and pray that the power didn't go out before 6 AM. He knew perfectly well what he had to do, but...he could never shake off the feeling that he might die that night; left to decay, his body stuffed into a spare Freddy Fazbear suit, forgotten and alone until the staff would discover the stench of his rotting corpse. He had come perilously close to getting caught by the robots a few times, but always, at the last minute, he would survive.

All the other employees were amazed at him. They knew that the average time that a night guard stayed was about a week (since that was the required minimum), six or seven nights if they were persistent. After that, they all ran away, never coming back. But Mike was far more determined than the rest. He was already starting his fifth week, much to their surprise.

But the only reason why Mike didn't up and quit was because the job paid the bills. He had leftover student loans from college to pay, along with the rent for his tiny, cruddy apartment and the cheap piece of shit he called a car. If he didn't keep up the job, then he would probably would have been thrown to the streets and become a street bum. And he swore he would never let _that_ happen.

He never tried to explain to the public about the fact that killer robots dwelt in the family-friendly pizzeria, either. Who the hell would believe him? Those cameras never kept the night footage (they merely watched the scenes), and plus, a story about that was good material for a B-rated horror movie. Like it was _really_ possible for robots to come to life. Besides, if they closed the restaurant because of that, Mike would lose his job.

The good thing for Mike was that after the first week, the manager had doubled, later tripled his pay, so that helped. But the bad thing was that no matter how hard Mike tried to get another job that would pay better (and not have deranged robots trying to kill him), he could never manage to get hired by others. It seemed like fate that this pizzeria was the only place that would keep him. What a fucking stroke of luck, huh?

He walked into the Office and flickered on the lights. Automatically, the little fan on his desk turned on as well, blowing the air around. Mike once wanted to turn it off, since it consumed power, but he knew better not to. One minute without the fan and he'd be roasting in that dry, stale heat. He had to keep it on, or else risk getting baked alive.

Picking up the tablet, Mike sat in the chair, adjusted his dark tousled hair, and starting flickering through the grainy film. He made sure to keep a close eye on Pirate's Cove, as well as the Show Stage, since Freddy had become more active than usual these past few nights. Of course, the grizzly never moved until both Bonnie and Chica had left, but once they did, he was all over the place. He braced himself to see the animatronics start moving as the time clock chimed midnight.

* * *

3 AM...

No movement. What the hell?

Mike was confused. He knew that practically everyone would be up and about by this time. Bonnie and Chica would be at his left and right doors (respectively), with Foxy racing down the hall, his hook raised. Freddy would probably be in the girls' bathroom (the perv) or the kitchen, with his creepy music and his taunting laugh echoing down the hall. That bear sure took his sweet-ass time, always planning new ways to get to the Office, new ways to scare him, though Mike was normally quick enough to slam the doors shut in time. (Once Freddy got close enough to stick his paw in before the door came slamming down on it. Mike remembered that the bear didn't take that too kindly. He had had to be put in maintenance for that paw.)

But tonight...not one animatronic had moved a limb. They stayed perched on that stage, completely lifeless. The white glow from their eyes was gone; they never even turned to look at the camera. Foxy stayed behind his curtain at all times, not even peeking out. It was like they were actually normal animatronics that shut down during the night.

"Why aren't you guys moving?" he said out loud to himself as he checked the feed.

Nothing. No singing from Foxy. No laughing from Freddy. No creepy groaning sounds from Bonnie and Chica. No giggly sounds from Golden Freddy, who didn't appear all that often. Not even the little carnival music that played sometimes was present. Everything was eerily quiet.

"This has to be a trick or something. Maybe those assholes are planning it to let my guard down," Mike said to himself, wiping his brow. "But they ain't getting me!"

* * *

3 AM turned to 4 AM, then 5 AM. Yet there was still no movement from the animatronics. They stayed as still as ever, as if they really were lifeless. Mike considered getting up to check on them, but he knew it would be stupid of him. If he got too close, none of them would think twice before sinking their teeth into his flesh. (He knew Foxy definitely would, with those fangs of his.) He didn't want permanent brain trauma on top on his shitty job, _thank you very much_.

Mike leaned back in his chair and exhaled as the time chimed 6 AM an hour later.

He did it. His shift was over...

"I can't believe it. Not one of those fuckers came to murder me," Mike said to himself as he stood up and turned off the tablet. He turned off the light and headed towards the door.

Before he went out, however, he turned to look at them again. The animatronics still stood like statues, never moving. They didn't even acknowledge his presence.

"Huh...weird..." Mike said as he turned back and went out the door.

* * *

"Hey, there, Mike! Glad to see you came out alive!" the manager joked as he walked up to Mike, the keys still in his hand. It was the same thing that he always said whenever said night guard was relieved of his work. But he didn't know about the animatronics' true malicious natures.

"Very funny," Mike said, but his voice wasn't in it. His mind was still thinking about the robots inside the building.

The manager noticed the tone of voice. "Hey, Mike? You okay...?" he said uneasily.

Mike shook his head in disbelief. "The weirdest thing happened in there," he managed to say breathlessly.

"What? What happened?"

"The animatronics...they never moved. Not once."

The manager's eyes grew wide. "Really, now? They didn't?"

"Yeah...I thought it was weird. They were really active last week, but now...nothing. It's like they're actual statues."

The manager's brow furrowed as he scratched the back of his head. "Not moving...that won't be good. That means their servos might get locked up. They won't be able to perform for the children today, and that'd be bad. I better go check up on them quickly, before we open. Maybe their free-roaming switch was just turned off."

"Maybe, but I doubt it. Those things were usually able to flip it on their own. They sure don't have problems with that," Mike said, rolling his eyes. Then he looked back at the manager. "You want me to help you out...?"

"Nah, it's alright. Your shift's over, go on home and get some sleep," the manager waved it off as he started heading towards the building.

Mike looked back at him for a moment, then shrugged and headed the opposite way, getting into his piece-of-shit car and driving off.

* * *

 **A/N: Welcome to another story by me, KittenRainbow! :D**  
 **Now, this story (as all my other ones, unless specified) is an AU in the following aspects:**

 **1\. The Missing Children's souls (as well as the Mother's) are no longer haunting the animatronics. This time, it'll be the actual robots themselves communicating with good ol' Mikey. XD (However, the Good Ending has not yet come.)**

 **2.** **Mike tends to swear quite a bit, and he's got that "attitude". XD**

 **3\. Jeremy will appear, as well as Fritz Smith, though they probably will not appear till much later.**

 **With that, I hope you enjoy this story, and please fav and review, I would really appreciate it! :D**


	3. Chapter 3: Inactivity

Later that night, Mike returned around 11:50 PM for his next night shift. He saw that the manager was there, barely closing the doors. The manager himself didn't seem too happy. He looked like he was grumbling to himself.

"Hey, what's up?" Mike called out, getting out his security cap from his overnight bag.

"You were right," the manager started, without so much as a greeting. "The animatronics' free-roaming switches were fully on and functional, but...they never moved. Not so much as a twitch came from them. And earlier today, when I switched them to normal daytime mode...they still didn't activate! Not one of them moved!"

"Whoa, really?" Mike was surprised.

"Yeah, it was terrible. Obviously, they can't perform for the children if they're incapable of moving, so I closed the pizzeria for today. I tried to work on them, and everything seems fine. Their systems are all online, and their AI is working...but it's like they're dead inside. They don't respond to me, they don't even _look_ at me anymore. It's just...so _weird_ , you know?"

Mike could only nod in agreement.

The manager shook his head. "I bet it was because of that incident that happened two weeks ago."

Mike looked up. "What happened, anyway? Even if they were broken down, I could've gone anyway," he asked, shrugging his shoulders.

"Nah, don't worry about it. All four of them just needed...maintenance. That's all, nothing else to it. Anyway, I gotta go," he said. "It's all up to you now, Mike. Oh, and if the robots don't move again, let me know, okay? It could be a bug in their system...or _something_ , I don't know."

"Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on them," Mike reassured. "Go on home now."

* * *

Mike walked back inside the dimly-lit pizzeria. Surprisingly, he didn't feel the cold chill go up his spine this time. He felt...normal, actually. Like he was doing a real job. The night guard placed his cap on, then walked right up to the Show Stage. He turned to look up at the three animatronics. They were still immobile, even though it was past midnight.

"Hey," he called out. "Why aren't you guys moving? Don't feel like killing me anymore?"

No answer. Mike tried waving a hand in front of Bonnie, then Freddy, then Chica, but not one of them registered anything, which was odd. These robots were designed to recognize children, adults and even the furniture, yet they didn't recognize him. He even went as far as to knock on their fur-covered metal chest plates, but no dice.

Mike turned and walked over to Pirate's Cove. Pulling the purple curtain aside, he saw Foxy there, in the same slumped-over position as his fellow robots. Though his jaw was still broken and those scary sharp teeth still poked out, he didn't look any more intimidating than his robotic friends. Mike stared at him, then turned back to look at the others. Still not moving.

"Idiots..." he muttered to himself. Turning back, he headed towards the Office to start his shift.

* * *

It was like that all week. Mike would arrive for his shift, and would spend six hours doing virtually _nothing_. It was tedious and super boring. He would almost rather be scared to death by these guys than to sit here and do nothing.

 _Almost_ being the key word.

With each passing day, the manager grew more and more frustrated. He couldn't open the pizzeria to the public, knowing that the animatronics were not moving. He had several mechanics come in to try to figure out the issue, but none of them could find anything wrong. If anything, their systems seemed to work better than before.

After about a month of inactivity, the manager finally gave up. Nothing he tried seemed to make the animatronics move, and profits were way on the downside. He decided it would be best to just pull the plug on the business altogether. The pizzeria wasn't doing too great anyways. Ever since the Bite of '87, only a handful of loyal families remained, but they couldn't come often enough. He might as well shut down the entire company while he still could.

But the manager wouldn't be able to shut it down right away. Everything had to be cleared out, and for the robots...well, there was no other place to take them. They would have to be - dare he say it? - _scrapped_.

It would take about a week for the notice of termination to get around. After that, the cleaning crew would come and remove everything. Then he'd be able to put the building on the market or something.

The thing was, even if the place was shutting down...he still needed a night guard to watch the place. The manager didn't want the animatronics getting stolen or the pizzeria vandalized while it was closed. The furniture and everything was in good conditions, and he didn't need those stupid teen assholes coming to ruin what was left of the place. The good thing was, he _did_ have a night guard on hand...

* * *

"Well...my last week here," Mike said flatly to himself as he entered the building at around 11:45 PM. He had been disappointed about the closing of the pizzeria, mainly because that meant he would be out of a job soon. Even with the engineering degree he had acquired at a good college, hardly anyone wanted to take him in. Sure, they'd interview him and all, but...no "You're hired!" or anything like that. Not even a phone call. Assholes.

He walked up to the animatronics, who were just as lifeless as ever. He looked over and saw that Bonnie's red guitar had a coating of dust covering it. Feeling slightly guilty, he took out a rag from his overnight bag and wiped it off. Then he turned to face all of them.

"Guys, I've got some bad news," he said out loud. "Because all of you assholes are all deciding to go on strike and not move, the manager's closing down this place. I don't know what's gonna happen to you...but my guess is that you'll probably be scrapped." He turned to face Pirate's Cove. "You too, Foxy. They don't have any other place for you all.

"Anyway, this is gonna be my last week babysitting you guys. And even though you guys kept trying to kill me weeks back...well, sorry this had to happen to you. All of you were kinda cool...even with the killing thing and such. But still, you guys are still seriously creepy-looking."

Mike saluted them and turned to leave, but then turned back. A mischievous grin came on his face as he stepped up onto the stage to face Freddy. Before, he would have never even _thought_ of coming this close to the large eponymous mascot, but now...things were different. He reached out and squeezed the bear's nose, causing it to squeak loudly. The bear gave no reaction whatsoever; he merely stared off into nothing.

Mike chuckled. "I've always wanted to do that at one point," he said lightly. Then he turned and headed towards the Office.

* * *

Mike sat in his large dark chair and picked up the tablet. At this point, he probably wouldn't even need it, but it was pretty much a habit. He couldn't help it now. He didn't feel right if he left the tablet alone.

After turning it on, Mike rolled around in his chair, utterly bored. He distracted himself by watching the little fan swivel around the room and by playing with the small cupcake animatronic that was usually on his desk. He knew he should have probably brought his video-games or something to pass the time, but in all his hurry to get here in time, he forgot. Plus, it was against the rules, and Mike wouldn't take any chances of the manager suddenly announcing a surprise inspection. He didn't want to get laid off any sooner than he had to.

2:30 AM...man, he was tired now. Maybe a small nap wouldn't hurt...besides, these guys weren't moving anymore. Mike shouldn't have to worry about them. Mike placed the tablet in sleep mode and put in on the desk. Sighing, he leaned back in the chair, tucking his arms behind his head and closing his eyes.

Just as he was dozing off, a sudden clank of metal was heard somewhere within the building. Mike immediately sat up, his instincts on guard. Did someone break in? Grabbing his tablet, he flickered through the dark camera images, wondering where the sound had originated. Hmm. Nothing seemed to be out of place...then he checked the Show Sta-

Mike suddenly gasped as he nearly dropped the tablet. "Oh, shit!" he yelled.

Bonnie was gone from the Stage.


	4. Chapter 4: Found You!

"Oh, no, no, no, NO!" Mike hissed to himself as he frantically checked all the cameras, his thumbs flying. He couldn't find the purple rabbit anywhere. An all-too familiar chill slithered up his back, and he was now sweating buckets. "I KNEW it. These assholes waited all this time, JUST to fuck with me. Shit. I'm dead. I'm dead. I'm SO dead right now..."

Wait! There he was! Bonnie was in the dining area. But instead of standing still and looking creepy, as he usually did when onscreen, the purple rabbit was sitting down at one of the tables, tuning his guitar. Mike was surprised. He'd always figured that the guitar was as fake as all their fur, being nothing more than a kiddie prop...but this one seemed quite real. It had strings and everything.

After tuning the guitar, Bonnie placed the strap around his shoulder and starting playing a little tune. It didn't sound like the cheesy, happy little songs that were normally played for the kids. No, this song had more power and passion behind it. It was a real song. Mike couldn't quite place the song, but he knew it sounded familiar. He had definitely heard it before.

The purple rabbit kept on playing for a while. The melody seemed to fly throughout the pizzeria. Mike couldn't believe what he was hearing - hell, if Bonnie played THIS in the day, he'd sure bring up a lot more customers!

At this point, Mike realized his head was bobbing to the music. But he didn't care anymore. This song was just so damn good that he couldn't help it.

As Bonnie started playing a totally kick-ass solo, Mike whooped and clapped. He was just so into this tune! "Yeah, you go, Bon!" he cheered on.

Suddenly, Bonnie stopped playing, having heard the strange noises coming from the corridor. He glanced up, and seconds later, the feed on the camera blacked out, showing only static. When it came back on a bit later, Bonnie was no longer there. Only the guitar was, lying on the table.

Mike gasped, his eyes wide. Oh no, Bonnie had noticed him. He was so dead now, he knew it. Why the hell did he speak up?!

Frantically, he started checking the cameras, trying to find where the hell the purple rabbit had gone. He wasn't in the Backstage room. He wasn't at Pirate's Cove. He wasn't anywhere in the hallway, and he wasn't at the door.

No. Bonnie was nowhere in sight.

Determined to keep his ass alive till six AM, Mike kept flickering through the film, hoping to catch a glimpse of Bonnie somewhere. He couldn't have just vanished into thin air like that!

Suddenly, he stopped cold as he caught the sound of hydraulics softly whirring. Mike immediately started shaking and his heart started pumping as he slowly turned around, awaiting his doom.

Bonnie was standing right behind him, his red eyes making contact with Mike's blue ones. Turns out he had entered from the opposite hall. But instead of screeching loudly and then knocking him out, or something like that, Bonnie simply looked back at him, looking curious.

Man and rabbit stared at each other, both completely still. Mike's heart was beating so hard, he was sure it would jump out of his throat at this point. Why wasn't Bonnie mauling him and stuffing his bloody carcass into a suit? Why was he just standing there?

Bonnie's eyes danced up and down, obviously looking him over. He blinked twice as he noticed the golden badge on the night guard's chest. Curious, he slowly started to reach out for it.

Mike completely lost his shit at this point. Bonnie was gonna kill him now. He was gonna die. He couldn't move, he couldn't think; he was so scared. He squeezed his eyes shut and let out the loudest scream of his life.

* * *

Apparently, Bonnie wasn't expecting this. He let out a terrified, inhumane-sounding screech of his own and turned away, placing his arms up to shield his face. He stayed still, his metal endoskeleton quivering in fear.

Mike recovered from his initial fright and looked over at Bonnie, dumbfounded. He was surprised to see the animatronic act like that. Was Bonnie actually afraid of him? Was Mike not going to get stuffed into a suit? He didn't seem to portray any animosity. In fact, he looked absolutely terrified.

Great, now he felt bad for actually scaring the animatronic, however evil it might be.

"Hey, um..." Mike said softly. He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, watching as Bonnie peeked out from under his arms. "Sorry. I-I didn't mean to scream like that...I wasn't quite expecting you to be here, heh..."

Bonnie tentatively removed his arms from his face. His large red eyes looked right into Mike's, looking fearful, but also curious at the same time. His furry ears twitched a bit.

Mike's eyes widened and he held his breath as Bonnie reached out for him again. But instead of grabbing him and dragging him along to be stuffed into a suit, Bonnie merely touched the golden badge that determined Mike's status as a nighttime security guard. The purple rabbit cocked his head and blinked twice, looking confused.

Mike followed his gaze. "Oh, that? That's my badge. I work here, but you probably already knew that," he said, shrugging his shoulders. I've been here for weeks, you know."

Bonnie still looked confused. He pointed to the badge again his jaw slowly opening and closing, as if he was attempting to speak. Mike looked over and fiddled with the golden scrap of metal. "Well, in case you don't know, I'm the night guard here. I sit here and I watch you guys on the tablet."

He didn't know why he was speaking to Bonnie in this manner. The rabbit was a damn fucking killer...yet, now that he was moving again, he only showed mere curiosity at Mike's words. Why? Why was Bonnie not killing him? Bonnie seemed to comprehend the words this time. He nodded and blinked a few times in understanding, but he made no other movements. All was still, except for Mike's breathing and Bonnie's servos humming softly.

"Hey, um, you're standing a little close to me. I-I would appreciate it if y-you stepped back a bit," Mike said nervously. He braced himself, waiting for the purple rabbit to screech in response and drag him away to be killed, but no dice.

Instead, Bonnie made a clicking noise from his voice box and stepped away, standing at a polite distance. He then started to bob back and forth on his feet like a child, occasionally clapping his paws together. After a bit, Bonnie stopped bobbing and stood still, looking less afraid of the human now. He lifted his furry paw and pointed at himself.

"M-My name is B-Bonnie..." he said, his voice box sounding distorted and strange. For some reason, it didn't quite sound like his pre-recorded voice in the daytime. Instead, it sounded more...real. It still had a metallic ring, but it still strikingly resembled a human's: slightly low-pitched, with the slightest hint of a country twang.

Mike was confused by this gesture until the rabbit pointed at him.

"Y-Your name...?" Bonnie said, trying to get his glitchy voice box to work properly. It had been quite some time since he had last used it (and not the pre-recorded words).

"Oh, uh, I'm Mike Schmidt," Mike said quickly. "But you can just call me Mike if you want, I don't mind."

Bonnie went still as he processed all this information into his memory banks. After that was done, he made another clicking noise, then extended his paw towards the night guard. "N-Nice to meet you, M-Mike!" he said, his voice box getting better with every word.

Mike laughed a bit and shook the rabbit's paw. "Nice to meet you too, Bonnie," he said. "So...I guess this means you're not gonna kill me?"

Bonnie's eyes widened at this. Then he threw his head back and laughed loudly. It sounded a little weird due to the glitching voice box, but it didn't sound creepy like Freddy's laugh. It just sounded like Bonnie was laughing at a joke Mike had told.

"K-Kill you? W-Why would I kill you?" Bonnie giggled, having to hold his side. "We are programmed to never hurt anyone, not a child or an a-adult!"

Mike was dumbfounded at this. "Wha...But you guys have all tried to kill me ever since I started to work here!" he cried out.

Bonnie kept laughing, having to actually wipe a tear of oil protruding from his eye. "You're silly, M-Mike! We have never tried to harm anyone, ever! But if a bad guy, like a robber or a vandal breaks in, then Freddy takes care of that, since he's the strongest. But he never actually kills them!"

Mike didn't know what to say to this. Those fucking robots had been trying to stuff him into a suit since day one...but here Bonnie was, saying that all of them would never lay a malicious hand on anyone. What gives?

At this moment, both Mike and Bonnie jumped as a crash was heard from the outside. Instinctively, Mike grabbed the tablet and started flickering through the cameras, trying to find the source of the noise. As he came across a black screen with the AUDIO ONLY words embedded within the feed and loud metal clanging, then he knew that it was coming from the kitchen.

Another burglar, or had another animatronic come out to play?

Bonnie, hearing this, clapped his large paws happily. "Alright, Chica must be making us some pizza!" he called out excitedly. "She makes the best food ever, you know! Ooh! Wait! I should introduce you to her! Come on, Mike!"

With that, Mike was suddenly dragged out of the Office and both of them headed towards the kitchen.


	5. Chapter 5: Meet the Family

Even though Bonnie didn't seem like he was gonna kill Mike and stuff him into a suit, the night guard couldn't seem to shake off the feeling that something bad loomed right around the corner. He didn't feel totally safe yet. All this was happening so fast: the animatronics becoming sentient and (seemingly) friendly, and the possibility that he might (or might not) just survive the night, especially since he was at their hands.

"Hey, Chica, I found us a new friend!" Bonnie called out as he and Mike burst into the kitchen. As Mike's eyes adjusted to the bright kitchen lights, he saw that Chica was busy working at one of the stoves. She was patting down a dough mix, and then she added a thick coating of red tomato sauce. The Cupcake sat on the table next to the chicken, its plastic flame glowing brightly.

Chica's purple eyes looked up and she smiled, showing her white teeth as she saw Bonnie. "Heya, Bon!" Her voice box seemed to be in better shape than Bonnie's; it didn't glitch out as much, and it sounded much kinder and sweeter than before. (It kinda reminded Mike of his mother's voice. Still had that metallic ring, but sweet nonetheless.) Then her gaze turned to Mike, who started to sweat nervously. "Oh, and who's this?" she asked, putting the dough down. "I don't believe I've seen him before!"

Bonnie gave Mike a hearty slap on the back, making him cry out in surprise. "This is Mike! He's the night guard for this place, and he makes sure no bad guys get in! And he's my new friend!" Mike coughed lightly and weakly waved a hand at the chicken. "H-Hey there," he stuttered. "Well, hello there, Mr. Mike!" Chica said happily. "I'm Chica! Say, do you like pizza?"

Mike cleared his throat. Chica didn't seem to have a mean bone in her body, either. She actually seem pretty cool, now that she wasn't creeping up on his window, baring those white teeth. "Yeah, I do. Especially with extra cheese," he answered.

Chica gasped happily. "Me too! I love putting extra cheese on mine! Since I'm making a pizza right now, would you like one? You sure look hungry!"

"Sure, I'd like one," Mike replied, smiling as he did so. He could feel his stomach actually begin to growl. Well, a snack never hurt, right?

"Alright! One pizza with extra cheese coming right up for Mr. Mike!" Chica exclaimed excitedly as she quickly resumed shaping the dough. "Ooh, I hope we can become good friends, Mike! I always like making new friends!"

Bonnie laughed as he placed a hand on Mike's shoulder. "Come on, let's leave Chef Chica to her cooking," he said. "She likes her recipes to remain a secret."

* * *

While Chica continued making and baking the pizzas, Bonnie and Mike stayed at the tables to wait. Mike couldn't help but cast an uneasy glance over at Pirate's Cove. "So...wh-when does he wake up?" he asked nervously.

Bonnie looked over at the closed purple curtain. "Well, Foxy's never been the early bird," he chuckled. "He sure likes to stay in his pirate dreams when he's in sleep mode. He'll probably awaken later. But you'll like him, really! Foxy's a pretty swell guy; you just gotta learn to understand his accent and quirky attitude. Also, mind his hook. It's blunt, but it's definitely real."

Mike didn't need to be told twice about that hook. He had seen it plenty of times when he forgot to check on the cove and that fox quickly hauled his ass over to the Office. The rabbit's tone sobered a bit as he looked over at the big bear onstage, who was still deactivated at the moment. "Although..." he started, tapping his chin, "I-I'm a little confused as to why Freddy hasn't awoken yet. He's usually the first one to get up."

Mike's blood ran cold at the mention of this. Out of all the animatronics, he hated and feared Freddy the most. And now Bonnie was saying this asshole woke up FIRST?!

"S-So when do y-you think he'll wake up...?" Mike timidly asked, almost afraid to hear the answer.

The purple rabbit shrugged. "Like I said, he's always the first one to awaken. Heh, he usually wakes US up for the day. But maybe he's just really tired and wants more rest."

 _Yeah...I bet he's tired because he's become more active in the last couple of weeks before you guys shut down_ , Mike thought morbidly to himself. Maybe Bonnie and Chica really didn't think of killing him...but he wasn't so sure about Foxy and Freddy. Those two were always... _different_.

Mike stole a glance at his watch. Wow, was it really only 4:12 AM? It seemed such a long ago when he first encountered Bonnie in the Office. Now here he was, ready to chow down pizza with two animatronics. How lucky was he?

* * *

"Pizza's ready!" cried an eager voice from the kitchen. Right after that, Chica burst through the doors, balancing four pizza boxes in her arms. "I've got pepperoni for Bonnie, extra cheese for Mr. Mike, a sausage one for Foxy when he gets up, and one with all the works for me!" She went over and slid the respective pizzas to their owners. "I hope you enjoy it! Now, let's eat!"

Mike opened the box. Since Chica was a robot, he didn't expect too much of it...but once he had a look, he was amazed. Chica's pizza had been made just as perfectly as any human cook would make it. And it smelled totally awesome!

Tentatively, he reached in and grabbed a slice, watching with anticipation as the extra cheese hung from tendrils. After taking a mouthful, his eyes widened in delight. This pizza tasted like heaven on a crust! When was the last time he had tasted something like this?

"Wow, this is really good...!" he couldn't help but say out loud.

Chica overheard him and beamed. "Thanks! I made sure to make it extra special for you, Mr. Mike!" she said happily.

"Just 'Mike' is fine, Chica," Mike said after chewing and swallowing. "If you want to call me mister, then it's Mr. Schmidt."

"Mr. Mike Schmidt...got it!" Chica exclaimed as she processed the information into her data banks. "I hope we can become the best of friends, Mike!"

Mike nodded as he took another bite. As he did so, he noticed the pizza box that was reserved for the pirate fox. "If that one's for Foxy, what about Freddy?" he asked, his mouth full.

Chica gave a sad little smile. "Freddy doesn't eat much," she said solemnly. Before Mike could answer to this, a loud yawn suddenly came from across the room, making the three of them look.

"Aye, ye got that pizza fer me, lassie?" the voice called out merrily.


	6. Chapter 6: Pizza Talk

Chica gasped happily as she quickly stood up, making her chair fall over. "Hi, Foxy! Good morning!" she called out, waving.

"F-Foxy...?" Mike whispered, feeling his heart race.

Foxy gave a hearty pirate's laugh as he jumped down from the Cove. His jaw was still misaligned and his fur was still tattered and broken, but he looked just as happy and benevolent as the other two animatronics. "Good mornin' to ye too, Chica!" he said back to her. Then he turned to Bonnie. "Hey there, Bon! How ye holdin' up?"

Bonnie's mouth was too full of pizza to answer, so he merely grinned and held up a thumbs-up.

"Attaboy, me too," Foxy said to him. Then his one-eyed gaze turned to Mike, who shrunk back nervously. "Ah, now who's this? I don't reckon I've seen him before."

Chica went over to the night guard. "This is Mr. Mike Schmidt, the security guard here!" she said brightly.

"Security guard, huh? We've never needed one of those before, since tha' Cap'n usually takes care of things...but hey! Times change, don't they?" Foxy said as he strolled over to Mike and held out his good hand (the one that wasn't the hook). "How are ye, lad? I be Foxy, Cap'n of tha' Seven Seas!"

Mike tentatively reached out and shook the fox's hand. "I-I'm good, thank you," he said, trying not to let his obvious fear show.

Foxy let go, then grinned as he sniffed the air. "Why, lassie, I do believe ye made me favorite?" he asked Chica in a joking tone.

Chica giggled as she held out the closed pizza box. "One large sausage pizza, hold the peppers!" she said happily.

"Well, I'll be darned!" Foxy exclaimed, accepting the box. "I thank ye, lassie. Ain't nothin' better fer breakfast than some of yer mighty fine cookin'!" He went over and sat down next to Mike, with Bonnie occupying the other seat and Chica across the table.

The four resumed their "breakfast", laughing and talking, and overall in good spirits. Occasionally, Mike would sneak a glance over at the Show Stage to see if Freddy ever stirred, but the bear never moved an inch from his spot. It was just strange.

* * *

He turned back to the conversation once he realized it was about him.

"Can you believe it? Mike here thought we were gonna kill him!" Bonnie was saying. The three animatronics then burst into peals of laughter. Bonnie almost fell from his chair, Chica nearly choked on her pizza, and Foxy was banging on the table with his metal paw.

"Oh, you should have seen the poor guy's face! He was whiter than a glass of milk when he saw me!" Chica said, wiping oily tears from her eyes.

"Aye, so tha' lad thinks we're creepy crawlies?" Foxy asked, with a mischievous glint in his eye. Then he turned to Mike, bearing the biggest shit-eating grin ever on his face. "So, laddie, I reckon ye aren't afraid of me, are ye?"

Mike was indeed afraid. He saw that glint, but he didn't know what the fox was planning. He could feel his heart begin to race again.

Foxy loomed closer, grinning evilly and baring his sharp fangs. He raised up his hook and held it pretty close to Mike's face. Even though Bonnie said it was blunt, it still looked sharp enough to skewer someone.

" _Boo!_ " Foxy suddenly exclaimed, making Mike gasp and nearly fall from his chair. Then the fox started laughing hysterically, using his hand to wipe a few oily tears from his eye. "I gotcha!"

"V-Very funny," Mike said shakily as he steadied himself in the chair. He should have seen that coming. He took a few deep breaths to calm his pounding heart.

"Aw, Foxy, don't be so mean. You saw how his face looked," Chica scolded, but she still had a grin on her face.

Bonnie reached over and placed a paw over Mike's shoulder. "Mike, I don't know where you got the idea that we're robot killers," he said, "although it could have been from that one B-rated movie..."

"But we just want you to know that we're not killers, Mike," Chica said, smiling sincerely. "We're programmed to always protect our guests, never to harm them! We just want to be your friends!"

"Aye, I bet tha' lad was just afraid 'cause of me chompers and me hook," Foxy added in, chuckling to himself. "But ye don't need to worry, me matey. I just joke around, is all. Wouldn't ever think of harming ye fer real."

Mike nodded in assent, feeling a tad better now that his heart wasn't leaping in his throat. So maybe these robots forgot about them trying to tear him apart when they had that shut-down. It still didn't explain how they acted with much more sentience, or why they attacked when they did...but maybe Mike really could become friends with them. They didn't seem to have any traces of evil within their robotic bodies...

Well, at least _three_ of them did.

"S-So...," Mike started, looking back up on the Show Stage, "What's Freddy like? I just thought I should know for when he wakes up."

The three animatronics shared a look with each other before turning to Mike. "Well, he's usually quiet," Chica started.

"Tha' Cap'n doesn't talk much," Foxy added. "Not a great one fer conversation."

"Oh, and he's serious all the time," Bonnie continued.

"He doesn't smile," Chica added.

"Or laugh. It'd be a bloomin' miracle to see him like that," Foxy piped in.

Mike nodded, taking this all in. "Is that it?" he asked, a bit confused.

Chica shrugged sheepishly. "Like we said, he doesn't talk much, and he's serious all the time. We don't really know too much about him."

"Oh, wait. He doesn't like to be touched, either," Bonnie added. "He's a guy who really likes his personal space."

"He spends a lot of time in tha' Office," Foxy said.

Chica placed her hands up in self-defense. "But it's not as bad as it sounds. Freddy may be quiet, but he really is kind. He listens to you whenever you have problems."

"Whenever a bad guy gets in, Freddy never lets him hurt any of us," Bonnie added. "He makes sure we're okay, and checks our systems regularly."

"He's carin' and protective, and he also makes sure tha' lot of us don't get too rowdy," Foxy added, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "'Cause we do sometimes. 'Tis why I call him tha' Cap'n. He deserves it."


	7. Chapter 7: Remembrance of Things Past

The group resumed their eating, with Foxy cracking the occasional joke and the others laughing. At one point, he wanted to tell a ghost story, but both Bonnie and Chica objected, much to Mike's surprise.

Slowly, the clock ticked on by. Soon, the time read 5:48 AM. Any other night, Mike would have been sitting in the Office, gripping the tablet, his breathing heavy. He would have been drenched in sweat, and his body would have been trembling in fright at the sight of the animatronics at the door. He would have sat there in morbid silence, wishing for 6 AM to come.

But tonight...well, Mike was having a dandy ol' time. He didn't even bother to check the time anymore. Bonnie was right; Foxy really was a cool guy, save for the scary choppers he had. Other than that, he seemed perfectly normal, the ideal choice of a friendly prankster. Chica had been so kind as to make dessert once they had finished eating. She had wanted Mike to try out a new chocolate fudge recipe, and damn, that shit was amazing. Forget all the other desserts he's had over the years, this definitely topped it. Bonnie and Foxy agreed, as well.

Mike also got to know more about these animatronics. He learned that Bonnie was left-handed, yet played right-handed guitar. He could also understand different languages, though his voice box wasn't programmed to speak them. Chica had been a professional chef since her activation and had even been part of the kitchen once. Her main thing was pizza, but she also learned how to make other things, such as that kickass chocolate fudge. Foxy used to work at a pirate-themed restaurant before he was shipped to the pizzeria, and he had a whole crew full of robotic pirate animatronics. Even though he never saw his old crew again, he still kept in touch with them, due to a microchip they had all managed to install in themselves.

Mike even told them some of his past life. He had graduated from the local college with a degree in mechanical engineering. He probably would have gone to work at a type of car company, if it wasn't for the fact that his last girlfriend had been an absolute bitch. Sure, she was pretty and all, with blonde, curly hair and sparkling green eyes, but all that was just for show. A few years into their relationship, she turned all bad. She stole everything that was in his entire bank account, checking and savings and all, and then dumped him right then and there. She never even bothered trying to return the money after blowing it on who-knows-what. She ran off to Florida with two other guys, and that's where Mike hoped she would stay. He had no intentions of ever seeing her again. But because she stole his money, he was broke and thus unable to work anywhere. So, when he saw the ad for the pizzeria, it was like a miracle.

Bonnie, Chica and Foxy were sad that Mike's ex-girlfriend had been so mean to him, but they lightened up at the mention of Mike being a mechanic. It had been quite some time since they were activated, and all four of the animatronics could use some sprucing up.

"Mike, me boy...I don't wanna be a bother to ye or anythin'...but do ye think ye could consider bringin' some of yer tools here? Me and tha' crew...we're not so young and chipper anymore. We'd all 'preciate it if ye could maybe work on us...since ye got that fancy degree?" Foxy asked, rubbing his arm sheepishly.

"Yeah," Bonnie and Chica agreed.

Mike looked around at them. "Well..." he started, looking completely serious, "I don't know. I'll have to check my very busy schedule." He looked away, his chin raised up, as if scoffing.

Chica shared a worried look to Bonnie and Foxy. She wasn't sure what he was thinking. What if he refused?

Mike kept up his serious face for a bit more, then smiled. "Just kidding! Of course I'll bring my stuff!" he said, making the three sigh in relief. "You guys do need some good TLC. That Phone Guy told me on my first night here that none of you have had a bath in the last twenty years."

Bonnie shrugged sheepishly. "It's true."

"Well, that's shit," Mike said, furrowing his brow. "You guys were the heart and soul of this place. The children loved you, from what I heard. Why the hell wouldn't they spend a few bucks to clean you?"

"It's probably because of Freddy," Chica explained sadly. "Whenever the cleaner guys came in, he would never let them get close to us."

"Why not? Does he not want to get cleaned?"

"No, Freddy said that they were dangerous. I tried to tell him that they weren't bad, but he wouldn't listen," Chica said.

"I hate to break it to ye, lassie, but I agreed with tha' Cap'n. I don't know, there was somethin'... _off_ about them cleaners. I didn't trust them," Foxy spoke up. "They had them mean ol' beady eyes. I wasn't sure if they wanted to fix me or dismantle me."

Chica turned back to Mike. "But I'm sure that Freddy will like you, once he wakes up," she said, the smile on her face again. "And then you can bring your things and clean us up! We'll look as good as new again!"

* * *

At that moment, Mike jumped as the clock chimed 6 AM. His shift was over.

Looking over at the animatronics, he expected them to fall dormant or to go back on on the Show Stage, but to his absolute surprise, not one of them did that. They merely looked back at him, curious.

Mike stared back at them, surprised. "Why aren't you guys falling asleep? Your free-roam settings should be turned off," he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, that. That's just our robotic programming," Bonnie said. "We're _supposed_ to shut down at 6 AM, but we kinda don't."

"Ye see, laddie, we're robots. But we're...different. We can see and feel just like any ol' landlubber can. But sometimes our robotic sides -our servers- act as our conscience. That might be what ye're talkin' 'bout," Foxy added. "But we only shut down when we need to charge our systems."

"We've always been this way," Chica spoke up.


	8. Chapter 8: Who's Missing?

Mike shook his head. "I must've eaten too much pizza," he muttered to himself. Then he glanced back up. "I guess it doesn't matter anyway. 6 AM means my shift is over. I've got to go now."

Chica gasped in disappointment. "Oh, do you _have_ to?" she said, her feathers drooping. "It'd be so much better if you stayed with us, Mr. Mike."

"Yeah, come on, laddie. Stay with us a while," Foxy said.

"Y-You could help us start the day," Bonnie suggested sheepishly, scratching the back of his head.

Mike smiled weakly. "I can't. The pizzeria's closed, remember?"

The animatronics' eyes widened in shock. They didn't know about this.

"Closed today? But it's Tuesday!" Chica exclaimed. "Why are we closed?"

Mike stopped. Did these guys seriously not know that the place was shutting down? "Um...manager's orders. He said he was gonna fix some things, so we're closing for the rest of the week," he said quickly.

"Well, I'll be darned," Foxy said. "If that was tha' case, tha' manager could've at least programmed our systems to tell us that."

"It was last-minute. He didn't have time," Mike added.

"Hmm...we'll have to tell Freddy that we're closed for the week. If we didn't know, he might not know either," Bonnie said thoughtfully. Then he turned to the night guard. "So is no one really coming in today? Not even the manager?"

Mike shook his head no.

"Then you shouldn't leave. We'll be lonely," Chica said sadly.

"I'm sorry, Chica, but I have other things to attend to," Mike said. "I have bills to pay and stuff like that. But I will be back tonight, honest."

Chica looked hopeful. "You sure, Mr. Mike? You're coming back here tonight?"

"At the stroke of midnight," Mike promised.

* * *

As soon as Mike came out of the pizzeria, he couldn't help but exhale loudly. "Oh, shit..." he gasped.

The animatronics were moving. They moved again! But fuck all that, they were ALIVE. They actually had human emotions and ate and slept.

Robots! Who were ALIVE! How awesome was that! It was totally something you'd see in the movies!

"I gotta call the boss," Mike said breathlessly as he whipped out his phone and started punching in numbers. "He's gonna shit bricks for sure!"

The line on the other end kept ringing, which was odd. Usually, the manager picked up quickly. Why was he not answering now?

"Come on, man, pick up the fucking phone!" Mike hissed. "Answer me!" He was just too flustered with the events that had happened in the last six hours. He had to tell someone! He couldn't just keep quiet about this; but then again, who else would believe it?

No answer.

The night guard kept calling several times, hoping that the manager would answer. He left about a thousand messages, but no answer ever came.

Mike sighed in frustration as he shut the phone. Well, this was a damn shame. He didn't know any other numbers to call or even where the manager lived.

"Well, Mikey, ol' boy, looks like you're on your own for now," Mike told himself as he got into his pile of scrap metal (aka his car), started the engine, and drove off. He'd find a way to contact the manager sooner or later.

* * *

True to his word, Mike pulled up to the vacant parking lot many hours later, at 11:55 PM. He whistled to himself contentedly as he stopped the ignition and got out of his piece-of-shit car.

He had never felt so...peaceful ever since the day he applied for his job. Before, those past couple of weeks were filled with dread, fear, and full-out panic. Filled with the idea that he might not survive to see the sun rise the next day.

But now...he felt calm. He had really gotten friendly with the animatronics, now that they were benevolent, and he no longer felt that cold chill racing up his spine. He felt...okay.

He unlocked the doors and stepped inside. "I'm here!" he called out, saddling his overnight bag, along with his toolkit.

"Ooh! Bonnie, Foxy, come on! Mr. Mike's here!" Chica cried happily as she burst out of the kitchen. Instead of her traditional bib, she was wearing an apron dotted with the same design, and it was covered in flour. It didn't take a genius to figure out that she had been cooking again, especially with the aroma of fresh dough in the air.

"Oh, I'm so glad you came back, Mr. Mike!" Chica gushed as she wrapped her feathery wings around Mike and gave him a bone-crushing hug.

No, seriously. Bone-crushing. Chica was the shortest of the animatronics, but shit, she was fucking strong!

"L-Little tight there, Chica," Mike gasped, hoping his ribs wouldn't crack under the pressure.

Chica noticed his distress and immediately let go. "Oops, sorry!" she said sheepishly. "It's been a long time since I was able to hug the children. I guess my programming is a bit off."

"Lassie, ye say tha' lad's here again?" Foxy said, his head peeking out of Pirate's Cove. Once he saw the night guard, he let out an excited whoop and ran over to him, his metallic feet thumping on the carpeted floor. "Hey there, matey! Glad to see ye again!"

Seeing Mike, Bonnie quickly put down his guitar and jumped down from the Show Stage. "Mike! You're back!" he said excitedly. "And you brought your tools!"

"Yeah, I did," Mike said, holding up his toolkit proudly. "Now there's just one question: Which one of you will I work on first?"

The animatronics all started talking at once.

"It'll be me, of course," Foxy said, thumping his hook to his chest. "I mean, really! Me jaw's right busted and me chest needs a new fur cover!"

"But I've been leaking oil recently, and my voice box's glitching out. I should get fixed first!" Bonnie contradicted.

"I could use some new servomechanisms for my legs. They've been locking up quite a bit," Chica spoke up. "And my left eye seems to veer off."

Mike laughed, as if the robots were nothing more than bickering children. "Well, I'm gonna go drop off my overnight bag in the Office. When I come back, I better have an answer from all three of you," he said, grinning as he headed over to the Office, his bag in hand.

No one noticed that the Show Stage was completely empty.

* * *

Mike punched in the button, and the door whooshed open. A gust of cold air hit him.

The night guard frowned. This didn't seem right. He had turned everything off when he left hours ago. So why was the fan whirring by on high speed?

He stepped inside, taking care to watch his step, since it was very dark in here. In fact...it was darker than it should have been. The small lightbulb that was overheard was still on, but quite dim. He could only see a few inches in front of him.

"Huh, weird," Mike said softly to himself as he walked over to the desk and set his bag down. He turned to leave, but then stopped when he heard a low, unearthly growl.

That all-too-familiar chill raced up Mike's back again. His blood ran cold as he turned around slowly. He could hear the heavy breathing of the one behind him.

He only had time to open his mouth and let out a terrified shriek before two large, cold paws reached out and seized him.


	9. Chapter 9: Intruder Alert

Mike went into full-blown panic. His heart pounded blood through his body at a million miles per hour, and he broke out in a cold sweat. His body trembled and shook like there was no tomorrow. Yet his mind was still conscious of one though: He would _not_ go down without a fight!

"Ah, n-no! No! Let me go, you b-bastard!" Mike yelled, trying to kick his legs at the large bear. His shoulders were locked in place by Freddy's large fists, and he couldn't seem to move his midsection, no matter what he tried. "Fuck! Let go of me! Help!"

Freddy was not fazed by this at all. He was seriously strong, even more so than Chica. His eyes - oh, man, those eyes - they were pitch black, with only tiny white irises peering through. His teeth were bared into a snarl, and even they weren't sharp at all, Mike knew the bear could probably tear off a limb with _those_ choppers.

 **"Intruder alert,"** Freddy said in a deep, gruff voice. (His voice reminded Mike of his father's voice.) His grip on Mike's shoulders tightened.

Mike's eyes widened. "I-I'm not an intruder! I work here! I'm a fucking employee!" he blurted out. "Let me go, dammit!"

Freddy blinked once, but his demeanor didn't change. **"State your name, employee."**

"M-Mike Schmidt," Mike managed to stutter, his breathing still fast and heavy.

The bear's expression went blank for a second as he checked his memory banks, although he didn't release the terrified night guard. Then it hardened again and his grip tightened once more. **"No employees found under the name Mike Schmidt. Intruder alert."**

Mike's eyes widened. " _WHAT?!_ But I fucking work here, you asshole! I've worked here for around three months now! How is my name not found?! Your system must be fucking broken! Help me! Somebody!"

 **"Intruder alert,"** Freddy merely said again. He began to move forward, pushing Mike against the wall.

Mike quickly thought of something that might help him not get crushed. "Wait, wait, please! Don't kill me!" he cried. "Michael James Schmidt! That's my full name! That's what I put on the application! _Michael James Schmidt!_ "

Freddy's face went blank again for the longest time. Then, after what seemed like a million years, his expression softened and his big paws released Mike's shoulders.

The night guard instantly backed away from the large bear nervously. He felt his arms, knowing they were going to be loaded with bruises. Under his breath, he kept muttering curses.

Freddy blinked twice, and his eyes returned to their normal blue-eyed state. "I'm sorry, Michael. I thought you were an intruder," he said in a softer tone, although there was practically no emotion whatsoever in his voice.

"Yeah, _no shit_ , Sherlock," Mike complained. "Thanks, I guess, for not killing me?" He knew he probably shouldn't swear around Freddy, but his heart was still pounding and his mind was still kicked into overdrive. Obviously he wasn't thinking clearly. "Fucking shithead..."

If Freddy took any offense to Mike's "colorful vocabulary", he didn't show any signs of it. He merely looked, emotionless, at the night guard, showing no movement whatsoever.

Mike felt awkward right now. How exactly do you get acquainted with one who was trying to kill you a minute ago?

* * *

At that moment, Bonnie, Chica and Foxy came running in the Office.

"Mike!" Chica cried. "Are you okay? We heard you scream!"

"No offense, mate, but it sounded like a lassie's scream," Foxy said.

Mike turned to face Chica and Foxy. "Y-Yeah, I'm alright," he said shakily, still trying to catch his breath. "Freddy just found me here, and he thought I was an intruder."

Freddy crossed his arms and gave a huff. "He was in the Office."

"And what, am I not allowed to go here? I'm the night guard, you know. I'm SUPPOSED to be in here," Mike said, turning back to face Freddy.

The bear didn't say anything; he merely narrowed his eyes and shot a deadly stare at Mike, causing another chill to race up his back.

"Alright, alright, I GET it. You don't like people all up in your precious Office. I get it. Just fucking stop staring at me like that, shit!" Mike said, rubbing his shoulder.

Freddy raised an eyebrow. "Why the swearing, Michael? Is it to sound tough?"

Mike's eyes widened. "What? You know what - _*sigh*_ \- this is how I've always talked, okay? I can maybe tone it down for you, but I can't really help it, alright? If you can't handle that, then that's on your head!"

"Alright then," Freddy said simply. "But do not use such language among the children." He didn't smile, but his eyes looked...amused? Opening the Office door, he turned and left, without taking a second look at his crew.

As soon as he was gone, Mike was finally able to calm his frantic wires down. "...Shit, that was tough."

Chica squealed and clapped her hands. "Oh, Freddy likes you, Mike! This is great!" she said excitedly.

"The fuck? How does he like me? I felt like he was ready to tear me apart!" Mike exclaimed, turning to the yellow chicken in confusion. "Those eyes... _*shudder*_ they were like, staring into the core of my _soul!"_

"That's just typical Freddy right there. If he didn't like you, he probably would have kicked you out or something," Bonnie answers sheepishly. "That's what he does whenever an intruder gets in. That way, none of us get hurt."

"I'd say tha' Cap'n got a liking fer ye," Foxy said, grinning. "Tha' way he told ye off about yer cussin' was just gold!" He started to laugh. "He does that to me, too. But hey, Ol' Foxy here's a pirate at heart. Can't help it if a few words slip from me tongue."

Mike rolled his eyes, not sure whether to feel embarrassed or relieved. "Fuck off, Foxy."


	10. Chapter 10: Our New Mechanic

After Mike had fully recovered from his near heart attack, he retreated to the Dining Hall with the rest of the animatronic gang. Chica disappeared back into the kitchen to continue working on her new pizza recipe. After a some time, the chicken came out with her special dish, called Bacon Delight. Of course, Mike joined in the "feast". While eating, Bonnie and Foxy began an intense debate over which topping would go best with Chica's new recipe: pepperoni or sausage.

Mike watched amusedly until his gaze wavered and his attention span withered. He then noticed that Freddy was missing from the table. Looking around, the night guard found that the bear was seated on the edge of the Show Stage, holding something in his paws. Mike wasn't sure, but he thought it could be a book of some sort.

Mike couldn't help but get up from the debate table and walk over to the Show Stage. (Bonnie, Chica and Foxy were so caught up in the debate that they didn't even notice him leave.) He knew it was probably stupid of him, but he HAD gotten friendly with the other animatronics. Why not try with Freddy, as well?

Besides, Mike knew that everyone considered Freddy the leader, and he really didn't want to get off to a bad start with the bear. That wouldn't be so good.

* * *

"...H-Hey, Freddy, whatcha up to?" Mike tried to say in a casual tone as he walked up to the Stage.

The bear said nothing as he continued looking at the book in his paws. He didn't even acknowledge Mike.

"Reading something? Can I see?" Mike said as he came closer and tried to read over Freddy's shoulder.

Freddy stiffened and veered away from Mike, giving him a hard look.

Mike backed away, sensing the tension. "Ah, sorry, sorry. Bonnie told me you didn't like to be touched. My bad."

Freddy huffed and returned to his book, his eyes slightly narrowed.

Mike bit his lip, wondering how to make this less awkward. He was being a total idiot right now. "Hey, um...what are you reading?" he said again. "I'm just curious, you know?"

The bear said nothing, as usual. He merely sighed and held up the book, letting the night guard take a look at the cover.

Mike nodded in understanding as he read the title. It wasn't a book at all; it was a service manual for the animatronics. It looked pretty old, but it was in good condition. "Ahh, that's right. Bonnie also told me that you check everyone's systems?"

Freddy nodded as he closed the book and placed it in his lap. "I don't trust human mechanics," he said in his quiet, deep voice. He looked down at the book and lightly stroked the cover.

"Well...I wouldn't want to brag, but I do have a degree in mechanical engineering," Mike said slowly. "And...the others were telling me how they need their stuff fixed...and I-I can do that. I can fix you all."

Freddy raised an eyebrow. He didn't say anything, but his question was clear.

Mike shrugged uneasily. "Well, why not? Phone Guy told me that you guys hadn't had your shit cleaned in about twenty years. I'd be pretty fucking pissed too if I hadn't bathed in that long." He looked Freddy over. "And no offense, but you yourself could really use an upgrade...like, a personality, for starters. I -"

Freddy cleared his throat and abruptly stood up, which made Mike back up nervously. Maybe the night guard had said a bit too much.

But instead of grabbing Mike and stuffing him into a suit, Freddy held his paw up. "Everyone, please come over here," he called out.

He had spoken it rather quietly, but as soon as he said it, Bonnie and Foxy stopped their debate and immediately went over to the Show Stage, quickly followed by Chica, who still had a slice in her mouth. Mike was amazed at their timing. Everything happened so fast.

They all stood around man and bear.

"What's going on?" Bonnie asked.

"Michael told me that you all needed maintenance done?" Freddy asked, eyeing each of his comrades.

Everyone was quiet for a while, the the red fox came up.

"Aye, Cap'n. I could use some sprucin' up, if ye don't mind," Foxy spoke sheepishly, scratching the back of his head. "Me jaw's busted and I've got holes in me chest. I know I'm not performin' fer tha' kiddies, but still...I don't like this here broken feelin'..."

"I'm leaking oil and my voice box is starting to give out," Bonnie said next, matter-of-factly. "It's starting to glitch out."

"The servomechanisms in my legs are locking up, and my left eye is breaking," Chica said, finishing off her pizza. She looked up hopefully at Mike. "But Mr. Mike can fix us...right?"

Freddy rubbed his chin thoughtfully at this, then turned to Mike. "As you know, Michael, I don't allow human mechanics near them," he said, gesturing to the other animatronics. "They are like family to me."

"Y-Yeah, I heard," Mike said, wondering where this was going.

Freddy looked down and was quiet for what seemed like a long time. He seemed to be in deep thought. Everyone held their breath, patiently awaiting his next words.

"However..." Freddy slowly began, looking back up and staring at Mike with cold blue eyes, "...as vulgar and immature as you may be...you're quite different than the others. I...I will let you work on them.

Chica gasped excited while Bonnie whispered something to Foxy. All three were wide-eyed.

Freddy cleared his throat again, signaling he was not finished yet. "But hear this, Michael. If I find out that any of my family has been harmed by you... **you will be VERY sorry**."

The cold tone of Freddy's words sent chills down Mike's back. "Um...o-okay. I promise I won't fuck anything up - I-I mean, I'll fix them all."

Freddy nodded and gestured for Bonnie to come closer. "Bonnie is to be fixed first, because a broken voice box is life-threatening for us. Then Chica, because her servos are locking up. Then you'll work on Foxy."

Foxy had a look of protest of his face, but he did not say anything. Once Freddy said something, there was no use arguing against it.

Mike nodded at this, then turned to Freddy. "What about you?"

The bear looked questioningly at Mike. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, what do you need help with? Surely, you can't be in pristine condition after all this time," Mike repeated. " I mean, look at you. You're about as shitty-looking as the others."

Instead of answering, Freddy merely shook his head. He handed the manual to Mike. "You will need this. Their systems are a bit antiquated compared to modern technology." Then, without another word, he walked out from them, heading down the hall.


	11. Chapter 11: Squeaky Clean at Last!

"Huh, that was weird," Mike said quietly to himself after the bear had gone.

Chica immediately let out a loud squeal that made Mike cringe and cover his ears. Even Bonnie and Foxy winced at her sheer volume. "Oh, my goodness, this is GREAT!" she cried, ecstatic. "You'll finally be able to fix us, Mr. Mike! Oh, I'm so happy, my feathers are preening!"

Bonnie nodded eagerly. "It's amazing how Freddy gave you permission to fix us! He's never done that to a-anyone before!" He quickly cleared his throat in an attempt to clear his glitching voice box.

"Aye, matey. Tha' Cap'n must have really taken a likin' to ye," Foxy said, grinning.

Mike rolled his eyes at the fox. "Whatever. Anyways, while I'm still here, I might as well start working on you now. Come on, Bonnie, you first."

* * *

"Whoa, this manual's actually pretty complex," Mike said in awe as he thumbed through Freddy's maintenance manual. "It's like fucking rocket science or some shit like that!"

Bonnie smiled sheepishly. "I-I wouldn't say rocket science; it just explains a lot about how our circuits work and things like that. And as you said, it is p-pretty old."

Mike and Bonnie were now in the Backroom. Bonnie was seated on top of the table (the spare endoskeleton had been pushed aside), and Mike was going through the book, gathering information before he started fixing the rabbit.

"Yeah, man. It dates back to the...70's, is it? I was barely a kid then!" Mike exclaimed. He turned a few more pages as he continued talking. "So, Freddy said a broken voice box is dangerous for you guys?"

Bonnie nodded solemnly. "I-I don't know how it does it, but...it just does," he said. "If it breaks, we can't speak, obviously. But then an oil blockage occurs in the p-pipes, and if no one notices, it'll leak all over our processors. The only sign of that happening is if we start coughing and spewing oil from our mouths. And if that happens..." Bonnie made the throat-slashing gesture.

Mike's eyes widened. "Whoa, shit...I didn't know it could do something like that," he said. "Have any of you guys had that happen?"

Bonnie shook his head. "But we know it could happen. It happened to b-both Freddy's brother and his brother's friend before."

"Freddy's brother and his friend?" Mike asked, confused. "Who were they?"

Bonnie scratched his head. "Golden Freddy and Spring Bonnie. W-We call them Goldie and Springtrap."

Mike felt the blood drain from his face. He didn't recognize Springtrap, but he sure as hell recognized the other. "D-Did they survive?"

Bonnie nodded. "Goldie's still around, but I don't know where Springtrap went. He was gone by the time Chica, Foxy and I were a-activated."

"Shit..." Mike murmured to himself. Golden Freddy, the hallucination-inducing asshole, was still around! But...was he still a vicious killer, or had he turned nice like the others?

And who the hell was Springtrap?

Mike cleared his throat. "Alright, enough gab," he said. "I've read plenty of this manual; now let's get that voice box of yours fixed." He grabbed his tool kit, and made his way towards the large purple rabbit.

* * *

Some time later, Bonnie burst out of the Backstage room, wearing the biggest grin on his face. "Oh, I feel so happy!" he sang in a lighthearted tone.

Mike had replaced the malfunctioning voice box and fixed the leaking oil pipe. Then, he had gotten some cleaning supplies to wipe away twenty years' worth of muck and grime off Bonnie's suit. After all the filth was scrubbed away, the night guard had cleaned and polished the bunny's purple fur, making it soft and fluffy again. He also oiled Bonnie's joints and check his internal endoskeleton to make sure nothing else was broken. After that, he was doused with a type of spray that smelled lemony fresh. Finally, Mike added a spiffy new bow tie for the bunny.

It was like heaven to Bonnie. He had longed for a thorough cleaning for several years. He felt so new and clean, as if he was barely activated. And what made it even better was that it was Mike who cleaning him, not some stranger that no one trusted. Mike was gentle; he never once hurt Bonnie (except for the implement of the voice box, but that wasn't a big deal, since it was only a little sting), and he kept talking and laughing along with the bunny. He was a good man, even if he did swear quite a bit.

And now Bonnie was finally fixed and cleaned!

Chica and Foxy came bounding over to him. "Ooh, Bonnie, you look so shiny and pretty! You're just like new!" Chica exclaimed, clapping her hands.

"Aye, mate, you don't look too shabby yerself," Foxy said, grinning. He couldn't wait until he was all fixed up just like him!

Bonnie turned back to Mike and hugged him. "Thank you so much, Mike! You have no idea how much this means to me!"

Mike chuckled as he untangled himself from Bonnie's arms. "No problem," he said, grinning. He then turned to face Chica. "Alright, Chica, Freddy said you're next. Come on over."

Chica seemed to almost preen at this. She excitedly jumped up and made a direct beeline for the Backstage Room. "Yay, I can't wait!" she cried joyfully.

Mike cast a look back at the fox and couldn't help but feel a bit sorry. He had wanted to go first, but now he had been bumped to last...unless Freddy agreed for some maintenance. "Hey, don't worry, man. Soon you'll be all fixed up again."

Foxy's eye seemed to shine at hearing this. "Then I 'spose ye quit yer yappin' and fix tha' lassie quick!" he said excitedly, grinning widely. "I'll be waitin' fer ye!"

* * *

"So, Miss Chica, what's ailing you tonight?" Mike called, pretending to speak in a professional doctor's tone.

"Well, Dr. Mike, the servomechanisms in my legs are acting up," Chica replied, pretending to sound like a Southern belle in distress (and she was actually doing a pretty damn good job). "They keep jamming, and I believe one of my eyes is breaking. It's making me look cross-eyed and I see cracks in my vision!"

"This sounds pretty serious," Dr. Mike proclaimed, putting a hand up to his forehead. "But never fear, fair lady, I shall be able to fix you!"

Chica giggled happily. "Oh, yes!" she said.

Mike giggled back. It was fun talking with the chicken. She was just so childlike and carefree.

The night guard bent down and examined her knee joints thoroughly. Her right leg was mainly okay, just needs a little oil and a few screws tightened...but the left leg was definitely fucked up. He could try to fix it, but he knew it was only a short-term solution.

"Okay, Miss Chica, it looks like I'm gonna have to replace your left leg at the knee. Nothing's gonna fix that. Are there any spare parts?" Mike asked, looking up at her.

Chica point to a large cabinet in one of the corners. "There, Dr. Mike. The bottom drawer contains arms and legs."

The night guard stood up and walked over to said cabinet. He opened the drawer and rifled through all the Freddy, Bonnie and Foxy arms and legs until he came across a Chica leg that seemed fairly decent. A good washing would spruce up those feathers.

"Alright, Miss Chica, I've got a nice replacement here," he called out as he came back to her.

"Okay! Here, let me help," Chica said as she reached down and unscrewed her bad leg, twisting it off completely, metal gears and all.

Mike's eyes widened. "Huh. I thought the fur suit wasn't connected to the endoskeleton," he said out loud.

"Oh, no, Dr. Mike, they are," Chica said sweetly. "But it's only our legs and arms. Our heads and chests can be taken off without touching the endoskeleton. But Goldie and Springtrap's suits are completely separate, since they were also meant to be worn as costumes."

Mike's blood ran cold when she mention that fucking bear's name again. He cleared his throat, wanting to pass off as casual. "So, uh, Chica...whatever happened to Golden Freddy, huh?" he asked as he started attaching Chica's new leg. "I haven't seen him since I first started working here."

Chica looked surprised at this. "You've seen Goldie?"

"Um, yeah. It was only like one time, though. I saw his face on some poster on the wall, and then the asshole just suddenly showed up in the Office. He didn't do anything; he just scared the living shit outta me, and then he disappeared. Weird, huh?"

"That _is_ weird. I mean, I know Goldie has powers and all, but he doesn't usually show himself to humans. He doesn't trust them," Chica said.

"Great. Another bear who doesn't trust me. What, he's got touch issues, too?" Mike retorted sarcastically, screwing in a few bolts on Chica's knee joint. "No, wait, let me guess. He doesn't smile or laugh either?"

Chica shook her head. "No, he does smile and laugh, though I think it's kinda funny. When he laughs, it sounds like a little girl. That's how we usually know he's coming. Did you know he loves to prank people?"

"Gee, I wonder why," Mike said as he finished Chica's leg and started to work on her eye.

"I don't know, either, but Goldie keeps pranking everyone, even us. Once he hid all the pizza ingredients! I couldn't even make a single slice! And then, one time he took all the strings on Bonnie's guitar and made flowers grow from Foxy's hook! And with Freddy, Goldie's done so many things to him I can't even count them anymore!"

"Goldie really seems to like Freddy, doesn't he?" Mike replied sarcastically.

"They are brothers. Of course Goldie likes to play tricks on him," Chica said, shrugging. She obviously didn't get the hidden innuendo. "But if you ask me, I think it's because Goldie's jealous that Freddy's the oldest. Brothers are always like that, for some reason."

* * *

Chica burst from the Backstage room, her eyes sparkling with joyfulness. She had never felt so clean and tidy in a long time! Her feathers were all shiny and fluffy again, and her joints were no longer rusted with crud. She felt like a whole new chicken again!

Plus, if all that weren't enough, Mike had found a eau-de-pizza cologne and sprayed it on her. Now she would always have the heavenly, cheesy scent of pizza on her! Imagine that!

She twirled around happily in a circle before turning back to face Mike. "Oh, Mike, thank you so much!" she gushed. "It's...it's been so long since I've been this clean! Oh, it just feels heavenly! And with the pizza perfume-thing, it's even more wonderful!"

"Hey, no pro -" Mike started to say when Chica bounded up to him and gave him another bone-crushing hug. Luckily, she was quick to let him go, so he didn't have to worry much about getting a collapsed lung or some shit like that.

"Aye, lassie, ye look mighty fine there!" Foxy exclaimed as he came over to her. Compared to her, he looked more like a walking bucket of rust than an animatronic, but his yellow eyes shined brightly with excitement.

Chica looked over at the red fox. "Thanks, Foxy!" she said happily. "And don't worry, you'll look just as spiffy as us when Mike's cleaned you up!"

"I be waitin' eagerly fer that," Foxy said, a wide, toothy grin on his face as he trotted over to Mike. "So, matey, ye ready to swab tha' deck?"

* * *

Mike and Foxy were silent.

They were now in the Backstage room. Foxy was seated upon the table, and Mike was studying the fox carefully, figuring out exactly what was needed to repair him. Broken jaw that barely hangs off the left joint, rusty old hook, fucked-up chest with lots of tears in it, no suit on the legs or left hand...and overall, quite dirty.

Mike exhaled and broke the silence as he jammed his thumbs into his pockets. "Alright, Foxy, what would you like me to do first?" he asked.

The red fox looked down at himself. "Well...I know there be plenty o' things to work on," he started, "but I'd like to have me jaw working again. I look like a bloomin' idiot with it hangin' down me face like that."

"Alright, fix jaw first," Mike repeated as he came up to Foxy and took a look at his face more carefully. "Hmm...the port that connects the right side has definitely gone to shit. I'll have to get a new jawbone." The night guard stood up and walked over to the cabinet where the spare parts were. He dug through the various animatronic heads, but all he found were a couple of Foxy heads. "Hey, Foxy, I can't find a jawbone by itself," he called out.

"You won't, lad. They don't have single pieces like that here," Foxy replied. "I mean, they did at tha' other location...but here, we're kinda short. You'll have to replace me whole head."

Mike shrugged. "Alright then." He took the head that was in best shape and walked back over to the fox. "Now let's see how we'll replace... _oh, shit._ "

While the night guard had been talking, Foxy had undone his own head and lifted it off, exposing his bare endoskeleton head. Mike thought he would shit bricks when he laid eyes on that thing, it was creepy as fuck!

Foxy chuckled when he saw Mike's face. "Aren't I tha' prettiest?" he said, wiggling his eyelids suggestively. He would have grinned if his endo-teeth had been able to. "Now I look like tha' other one o'er there." He lifted his hook and gestured to the other endoskeleton that had been pushed aside.

Mike gulped, then shuddered. "Ugh, whatever. Let's just get this thing on," he muttered as he carefully adjusted the new head onto Foxy's endo-head. Once that was done, he took some oil and oiled all of Foxy's joints, making sure that none got stuck or anything. "There, now let's work on that chest of yours. It looks like you got in a catfight or something."

"20 years of inactivity does that to ye, boy," Foxy said, shrugging. "I'm surprised it hasn't fallen off at this point."

Mike went back to the cabinet. He searched among the various parts until he found a Foxy chest that looked fairly decent. He also took two fox legs and a left arm just to save another trip. He turned back and nearly shit himself when he saw that Foxy had already torn off his chest and was wiggling his eyebrows.

"OH -! W-Will you STOP that?! You nearly gave me a fucking heart attack, you fucking asshole!" Mike swore as he tried to regulate his breathing again. "Ooh, I hate you!"

Foxy laughed heartily. "Not used to seeing me in me full glory, are ye, laddie?" he cackles as he tossed his old chest aside. "It's funny how ye jump and scream like that -!"

"ALRIGHT, shut up. I get it," Mike muttered as he came over and grudgingly helped Foxy put on the new chest. He also made sure to replace Foxy's legs and arm with the new ones, then moved on to clean him fully.

While scrubbing down Foxy's hook, Mike felt compelled to ask something. "Hey, Foxy...you think Freddy will let me work on him? He's the only one left, right?"

Foxy went quiet as he processed this question. "Well, laddie...I'm not sure, honestly. Tha' Cap'n is pretty firm about not lettin' anyone touch him. I'm still surprised he let ye work on us."

"Why, though? Does he normally act like that?"

"Pretty much, laddie. Always serious, always quiet, always distant...but it wasn't - oh, never mind. I be talkin' too much."

"Wait, what? What were you gonna say?" Mike said as he stopped scrubbing.

"Never mind, laddie. 'Tis not important," Foxy said, shaking his head.

"No, tell me, please," Mike said.

Foxy sighed. "Alright, lad...but just don't tell anyone ye got it from me, ye hear?"


	12. Chapter 12: Let's Have a Party!

Mike continued polishing Foxy's hook as the fox started talking.

"Ye see, lad, tha' Cap'n wasn't always tha' stubborn, sullen landlubber he is today. T'was many years ago...but he used to be like us. All cheer and happiness...he even smiled and laughed."

Mike tried to imagine Freddy smiling genuinely, but he found he couldn't. The bear was just...so serious. It seemed unheard of.

"Sad part was that Bonnie, Chica and I were new at tha' time. We was all activated for only a few months. Five...or six, maybe. But no more than a year. Those memories are mighty fuzzy now, but if I think real hard, I can almost picture him smilin' again."

"What happened?" Mike asked.

Foxy sighed and placed his free paw to his head. "The Reboot happened."

"Reboot?"

The fox nodded. "Ye see, laddie, a full reboot to us is like memory loss to ye humans. We lose everything we have; all wiped clean. The humans say it's to prevent permanent shutdown or motherboard damage."

"So, Freddy's memory was erased?"

"In a way, lad. Tha' Cap'n had somethin' wrong with his head. I don't remember what it was, but it was hurtin' him real bad. We didn't know what was going on till it was too late...and he shut down on us. That was tha' worst night I've ever recorded.

"We couldn't wake him up, and we thought that we had lost him fer sure. But then tha' humans came and took him, sayin' that they'll fix him...but they would have to reboot him. When tha' Cap'n finally awoke...well, to say it was hell was an understatement, lad. T'was horrible. It was hard both on him and on tha' lot of us."

Mike could only imagine what happened. "Wow...I didn't know..."

Foxy sighed. "Well, all that's in tha' past, me boy. Tha' good part was that tha' Cap'n managed to rewire himself, so he didn't completely lose all of his data...but I've yet to see him smile since that night. True, we miss his old self at times, but we've long gotten used to tha' way he is now."

* * *

After some more time, Foxy came bursting out of the Backstage, his shiny new hook gleaning brightly.

"AVAST, ME MATEYS! FOXY BE HERE AND HE'S READY TO SAIL THA' SEVEN SEAS!" he boomed loudly as he started prancing around the Dining Hall.

He was all fixed up again! After twenty long years of rotting away in the Cove, he was finally fixed again! No more broken, hanging jaw; no more holes and tears in his chest; and no more bare endoskeletons for legs! He was complete again, and all spiffy clean, too, while at it! Oh, he didn't think he felt this happy ever since he was first activated!

Bonnie and Chica were quick to run over to the joyous fox. "Oh, Foxy, you look amazing! Just like new again!" Chica exclaimed.

"I guess we're gonna have to get used to the fact that your jaw moves now, right?" Bonnie joked as he tossed an arm around his pirate friend. "It's great to see you fixed, Foxy."

"Well, me boy, don't be thankin' me. Thank Mike over there; he be the one who fixed us all!" Foxy said, gesturing to said night guard.

"Hooray for Mike!" Chica exclaimed, throwing her arms up in the air. "Oh, we should throw a party for this!"

* * *

True to her word, the yellow chicken had immediately started getting out all the festivities ready for the Mike party. She dashed into the kitchen and started cooking up a storm: pizza, cupcakes, and a fizzy lemonade that rocked his world. Even if she was a robot, Chica had to be the most kickass cook ever!

Bonnie didn't waste any time, either. He set aside one of the tables and decorated it fully. After getting Mike's favorite color, the purple rabbit went and got streamers, balloons, confetti, and party hats that fit the color scheme. Soon, the table was nicely decorated, looking fit for a king.

Foxy, however, was a crafty little one. He went to the back of the Pirate's Cove and came out with a dusty-looking bottle. Mike thought it was a prop or something, until Foxy had shown that it was actually a bottle of rum. Pirate rum, to be exact; the "richest stuff atop tha' seven seas", as Foxy put it. Luckily, Mike was definitely over twenty-one years of age, so he didn't have to deny it. He knew that he probably wouldn't be able to drive home if he drank, but hey, no one else was coming here. He could maybe just crash here for a little while until he felt sober enough. However, Foxy only let him have a sip, since one swig of this stuff and it would blow your mind. Bonnie and Chica couldn't even take one drop without getting completely trashed.

And holy shit, Foxy was right. Minutes after he had ingested the rum, Mike started to feel lightheaded and euphoric. Yep. He was definitely crashing here until he could drive.

Once the food was all ready, Chica brought it all out, pizza and all. The delicious aromas intoxicated Mike's nostrils; it smelled so fucking good! He couldn't to sink his teeth into a gooey, cheesy slice of heaven.

The rest of Mike's shift consisted of laughing, talking, eating and drinking by him and the three animatronics. Shame that Freddy never came; he was surely missing out on some great shit here!

* * *

Slowly, but surely, 6 AM came and went.

Mike probably would have stayed asleep if the morning sunlight hadn't shone on him. Groaning slightly, he opened his eyes and looked around.

He was sleeping on the Show Stage, for some reason. The party things were still on the table, though the food was long gone. Metal clanging from the kitchen told Mike that Chica was probably in there, and he could see Foxy and Bonnie. The rabbit was sleeping on the table, and the fox was out cold on the floor, still holding the bottle of rum in his grip.

Mike involuntarily let out a hiccup as he sat up shakily. Man, last night had been the best fucking party ever! Forget the parties at his college; _these_ guys knew exactly how to throw a shebang!

He still felt pretty lightheaded, but not as trashed as he was a few hours earlier. He didn't have the means to patch up his piece-of-shit car if he crashed it, so it'd be best if he stayed here a tad longer. There was no harm in staying, right?

Even so, he better retrieve his stuff early on. It was better to do so now than to panic while looking for it later.

Mike let out a yawn as he pulled himself to his feet. His legs were shaky, but at least he wasn't tumbling down like a dumbass. He shuffled his way over to the Backstage room and collected his tools and put them back in his toolkit. He then started to look for his overnight bag, but it was nowhere to be found.

"Now where did I put it?" Mike thought groggily to himself as he peered around the sunlit walls of the pizzeria. It wasn't on the tables, nor on the floor...and after doing a quick check, it wasn't lying under Bonnie and Foxy, who were still conked out.

"Hey, Chica?" Mike called out. "Did I leave my overnight bag in the kitchen? It's a dark blue one with black handles."

"No, sorry, Mike. It's not in here," Chica's reply came a few moments later. "But would you like some breakfast pizza? We've got a special sausage recipe!"

"I'll have that, thanks," Mike replied before turning back to the rest of the pizzeria. Well, the bag was not in the kitchen. If it wasn't anywhere else, then it had to be... _shit_.

It was in the Office. And guess who was in there at the time?

That's right, it was the Fazbear. Congrats, Mike! You are now officially the greatest idiot on the whole planet. Whoop-dee-fucking-doo!

Mike brushed off the incoming chill and made his way down the hall. "Come on, Mike, get ahold of yourself," he scolded himself. "Freddy's not gonna stuff you in a suit. Just ask him for the bag, and you'll be all set. That's it. Nothing to it, right?"

Mike was still repeating these words to himself as he arrived at the Office doors. He pressed the buttons to open them, and was about to enter, when he took a look inside, and what he saw instantly stopped him in his tracks.

"Aw, fuck..." he whispered to himself in dismay.


	13. Chapter 13: One Missed Call

Freddy was fast asleep on the security chair, his circuits softly humming in tune. Sitting right in front of him on the table was Mike's blue overnight bag.

Mike resisted facepalming himself. As if his life hadn't already been fucked up enough. Now how exactly was he supposed to get the bag without waking up the grizzly? He knew there would be hell to pay if Freddy was awakened.

Gently, Mike started tip-toeing into the room. He held his breath, not wanting to make a single sound. He didn't know how sensitive Freddy's hearing was; one wrong move and life would be over as he knew it. A rather shitty life, he would add, but still, he did have some good moments. Like, that seriously awesome party he had several hours ago with the other three bots. That was worth remembering.

In a few more seconds, he had reached the desk. Mike's heart started racing and sweat started dripping down his neck. Freddy's face was literally two feet away from him. He was so close, Mike could practically count the tufts of fur on his suit if he wanted to.

"Just grab the bag..." Mike thought to himself as he reached out ever-so-slowly and grasped the handles. He knew the bag would make a crinkling sound once he lifted it, so he made absolutely sure that he was super slow in lifting it.

He had almost lifted the bag completely when his cell phone suddenly started blaring out a techno ringtone, utterly destroying the silence.

* * *

Like clockwork, Freddy's eyes shot open, revealing two soulless pits with tiny pinprick pupils. Seeing something inches away from his face, Freddy let out a loud growl, grabbed the night guard by the back of his collar, and shoved him down onto the table, pinning him down. " **Intruder!** " he yelled.

Mike gasped. He thought he might even break a bone at this point. "I-It's Mike again!" he managed to squeak out.

Freddy quickly registered the voice and promptly let go of the night guard. Mike groaned and held his injured side. "You and I need to stop meeting like this...!" he said. "Like, can we make this a rule? No pinning down the night guard and possibly shattering his ribs? Let's just add that to the list, okay?"

Freddy merely narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms. "What are you doing?"

Mike quickly grabbed the bag off the table. "I was leaving, since it's past my shift. I was just getting my things. Calm down, will ya?"

Freddy huffed and sat back down in the chair. "How are the others?"

"They're all fixed now, and before you say anything else, I think they enjoyed it. I mean, it's been years since they've been repaired or even cleaned. You should have seen their faces, they were practically jumping for joy."

"Interesting," Freddy said, emotionless. Then he turned to the bag, which still had the buzzing cell phone. "Are you going to answer that anytime soon?"

"Yeah, yeah, I got it," Mike muttered to himself as he unzipped his bag and grabbed the phone. Taking a look at the caller ID, his eyes widened. "Oh, boy."

* * *

"Listen, Mike, so sorry I couldn't answer you yesterday. I was away on business...you know how it goes," the manager's voice chimed through the phone. "Still trying to hire the demolition crew and whatnot. Wouldn't you believe how hard it is to get a simple contract without having the business fucked up?"

Mike had stepped outside of the pizzeria to take the call. Freddy clearly wasn't interested in hearing it, and Bonnie and Foxy were still (amazingly) conked out on the floor. They must have drank a lot more than he had.

"Anyway, you must have left probably a thousand messages on my machine," the manager chuckled. "Now, what was it you wanted so badly to talk about? You get engaged again?"

Mike rolled his eyes at this, then continued to speak. "The animatronics," he said. "They've moved."

The manager's laughing tone went down faster than a lead balloon. "You're shitting me."

"No, I swear, these guys moved again!" Mike exclaimed. "They started last night, so I tried to call you once I got out, which of course you didn't answer. But dude, I am so completely serious right now -"

"This can't be," the manager said breathlessly to himself.

"You bet your ass it is!" Mike exclaimed, feeling giddy again. "I mean, I didn't think they'd ever move again, but then I saw Bonnie moving. The guy picked up his guitar and started shredding the most kickass beat ever! It was incredible -"

"Mike, wait. You said the rabbit started playing the guitar?" the manager interjected.

"Yeah, man. Totally sick beat. You should have heard it!"

The manager exhaled loudly. "Alright, listen. I don't know what kind of drug you're smoking right now, but there's no way he could have played it. First of all, they're not programmed to play actual instruments, because their fingers don't separate like that. Secondly, that guitar is nothing more than a prop. It doesn't actually play by itself, you should know that by now."

"But I'm not kidding! Bonnie was playing the fucking guitar!" Mike insisted. "And Chica - she can seriously cook. Like, for real, she should go in the Home Cooking Network. And Foxy, he knows how to tell good pirate stories! You should have heard it, it was -"

"Mike! What the hell are you getting at!"

"THE ROBOTS ARE ALIVE!" Mike exclaimed.

There was silence on the other end for quite a while. Mike waited, wondering if the manager might have even hung up on him.

"Mike," the voice started again. "I think this job's really getting to you. The animatronics are not alive. They are ROBOTS. Okay? Say it with me: _robots_. They're machines built with computer software installed in chips. They are NOT sentient."

"Well, call me batshit crazy, but these fuckers are definitely alive!" Mike retorted. "You know what? Let me get one of them on the phone. I'll prove that I'm not lying. Which one you wanna talk to?"

Mike, I -" the manager started.

"You know what? Chica. I'll get her, since she's the only one awake right now who would talk. Let me get Chica on the phone." With that, Mike turned back around and went inside.

"Hey, Chica, can you come out a minute?" Mike called out.

Chica quickly came out of the kitchen, her apron sticky with cheese. "You called, Mike?" she asked, wiping her feathers down on her apron.

Mike put the phone on speaker and held it out to the yellow chicken. "Say hi to the manager, Chica."


	14. Chapter 14: Nice to Meet You!

**A/N: Hey, look, I'm not dead. :D**

 **...So sorry this took months to update. D: This story, along with the others, to pushed to the back of my mind as I had to focus on life in general.**

 **Also, I am now also Undertale trash. There may be a story relating to that in the future. *w***

 **Anyway, enough ramb** **ling. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Le drama will intensify a bit.**

* * *

Chica beamed. "Oh, goody!" she said before she grabbed the phone and placed it near her beak and the area where her ears might be. "Hello, Mr. Manager? It's me, Chica!" she chirped brightly. "How are you today?"

She listened for a response, but all that she could register was shallow breathing, then a dull thud and something scraping the floor.

Chica turned back to Mike. "I can't hear the manager," she said, sounding concerned. "Is he alright?"

"Yeah, he's fine. He probably just shit himself. Here, lemme see the phone again," Mike replied nonchalantly.

Once given the phone, Mike put it to his ear. "Hey, boss, you alright?"

It took a while, but then the manager finally managed to answer in a shaky, breathless voice. "P-Please tell me that was you t-trying to impersonate Chica," he said.

"Look, I told you, I can't imitate voices. If I had a camera or something, I'd definitely take pictures to show you, but I give you my solemn word that was the real Chica. If you want, you can come over here to meet them. They're pretty cool once you get to know them."

"Mike...I know neither of us are stupid...b-but how can I trust you? How do I know you're not fucking with me? I-I mean, how do I know this is even real or possible?"

Mike was quiet for a little bit. "...Well, boss, unless you come over here, you'll just have to take my word for it. I'd get the others, but they're still asleep. But other than this, I can't prove anything. This phone of mine doesn't even take send picture messages. Just...come over. I'm not joshing you. For real."

Silence on the other end for a while, then some metal clanging was heard. No, more like jingling. Keys jingling. "I-I'll be there in fifteen minutes," the manager said, sounding a little hesitant. "And Mike, I know you're not really one to joke and you're the best employee I've had in decades...but i-if this is some sick shit you're pulling, I swear I-I will fire you so hard you'll never recover from it."

"Don't worry, boss, you won't need to do that," Mike said, feeling just the slightest bit nervous from the threat. "I'll see you in a bit."

Once he hung up, Mike turned to Chica, who was waiting patiently. "Well, Chica, it's time to get to work," he said. "Let's get Bonnie and Foxy up and start cleaning. We've got a visitor coming."

* * *

Some time later, a dark green van pulled up in the parking lot of the old pizzeria.

The manager slowly climbed out, exhaling loudly. Well, this was it. Either Mike was right about the robots being "alive", or he was really high off some drug he might have. He kinda hoped it was just the drugs...but what if the animatronics really were sentient? What then? What would he even do at this point?

Damn, it was way too early for this shit.

The manager locked his van, then headed toward the front doors. His hand instinctively started reaching for the keys in his pocket, but then he rembered that Mike was already inside. He reached for the doors, opened them, and stepped inside.

The place was empty.

"H-Hello?" he stammered as he slowly stepped inside. "Mike?"

"In the kitchen, boss!" Mike's cheery voice rang out.

The manager gulped as he made his way toward the kitchen door. Take it easy, take it easy... he thought to himself. Mike's gonna be there, too. There's nothing to be worried about.

As soon as he opened the door, the manager let out an unearthly moan. "Ohhh my..." he gasped.

There was Chica, happily cooking away in the kitchen. She was preparing a new batch of pizza dough with the rolling pin. On the counter, the small cupcake animatronic beamed brightly at her. What absolutely shocked the manager was that how mobile and lively Chica was. She didn't have any bulky or slow movements like a regular don't should have had. No, she was moving around as agile as a normal kitchen chef would. It seemed so...surreal!

Mike himself was leaning against the counter, wearing the biggest shit-eating grin ever. "How ya doing, boss?" he asked, saluting him at the same time.

At the same time, Chica looked up from her dough and smiled cheerily. "Hello, Mr. Manager! It's so nice to finally meet you in person! I'm Chica!" she beamed.

"S-Sweet mother of..." the manager breathed as he automatically grabbed hold of the table closest to him. "You're...you're alive..."

"I'd say sentient, but yeah, pretty close," Chica said as she returned to her baking. "Would you like me to bake you a pizza, sir?"

"Uh...s-sure. Make it with mushrooms," the manager sputtered, obviously not thinking clearly. Then he turned to Mike. "The others...?"

"Ah, right. This way, boss," Mike said as he got up and headed out the kitchen. The manager closely followed, very nervous, but extremely surprised at the same time. He couldn't believe this. He just couldn't.

Mike led his superior to the Show Stage, which had been closed with the velvet curtains. "Here, we have Bonnie!"

At that moment, the curtains flew open and Bonnie jumped into the stage, shredding a single chord on his guitar. "Hiya, Mr. Manager!" he belted out with a cheery voice. There was a small hint of a twang in there.

Said one's mouth dropped wide open. Bonnie really could play the guitar, and the guitar was actually real! This was amazing!

Without missing a beat, Mike ran over to the Pirate Cove, also shrouded in the thick purple curtains. "And over here is the one and only Foxy!"

A hearty laugh sounded as Foxy threw the curtains aside and did a little dance on the small stage. "Ahoy, Cap'n Manager! 'Tis be mighty fine seein' ye today! I'd introduce meself, but I reckon ye already know who I be!"

Foxy's appearance was so sudden that the manager had to take a step back. Holy shit, this was intense. The fox had always been his least favorite due to the large, gaping maw and the seemingly sharp hook, not to mention his raggedy look - wait a minute.

He wasn't raggedy anymore.

Hold on, scratch that; none of them were! They were all clean and well-groomed!

Forgetting to greet Foxy, the manager turned back to Mike with a pale shade on his face. "Mike, have you been cleaning these guys? I haven't seen them this clean ever since the Bite of '87!" he exclaimed.

"Oh, yes! Mr. Mike has been so kind and nice to us! He brought his materials over last night and he fixed all of us up! Well, at least us three, but still! He's amazing!" Chica bubbled happily.

"Wow...th-this is amazing. You guys look amazing, it's just like seeing you for the first time again," the manager said, breathless and astounded. So it was true. These animatronics were not just robots for children, they were sentient and aware.

Sentient robots...heh. Wouldn't the public get a load of that. That would be a hell of a boost for -

Oh.

Right.

"Hey, um, Mike, can I talk to you for a second outside? I, uh...it's something secret and important," the manager quipped nervously.

"Huh? Oh yeah, sure. I'll be right back, guys. Gotta chat real quick with the boss," Mike said to the animatronics as he walked outside the main doors with his manager.

* * *

Once they were outside, Mike turned. "Alright, what's up? You scared about seeing these guys or something?"

The manager quickly shook his head. "It's not that. I'm actually really surprised at this, including the fact that you cleaned them! I don't know if what you did was against regulation or not, since you're just a security guard -"

"-who has a degree in mechanical engineering," Mike winked. "Don't worry, they're all fine and Freddy approved of the whole thing. So, what's eating at you, then?"

The manager sighed and anxiously scratched the back of his head. "Okay, here's what's bothering me. The animatronics are sentient. Ordinarily I'd think this was a great idea, since we'd be able to have them do different things for the restaurant and the kids. But guess what place is being demolished at the end of this week?"

The night guard's eyes widened. "Ohhh, shit, you're right! Fuck, how could I forget about that?"

"Yup. And look, it gets even worse. These guys have no other place to go. There's like, literally no other Fazbear restaurants that are still in business in the area; the rest have either been shut down or demolished already. And the original owner, rest in peace, has been gone for a long time now. The only other option is for them to get scrapped."

The color drained from Mike's face. "...No."


	15. Author's Note

**A/N: At long last, I return! :D**

 **I want to deeply apologize for leaving you all hanging on the various stories that I had here. D: I did not meant to disappear for so long, and I want to make up for it by continuing my work!**

 **Some of my stories will be heavily edited/updated to fix plot holes and general information, so please have patience with that. But I will now try to get into the swing of uploading things.**

 **(This chapter will be deleted once these stories are updated.)**


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